Knicks guard unloads about frustrations: ‘They have no interest in keeping me’

Evan Fournier wants to find a new team.

The 30-year-old guard does not envision being back with the New York Knicks this upcoming season. He explained his concerns in a recent interview with L’Equipe, a French daily newspaper that covers sports.

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According to the New York Post translation of this interview, Fournier is worried about the Knicks’ current roster construction and wants to be traded: “They have several players with big contracts coming in. Unless they want to pay a crazy luxury tax… If I stayed, it would be a disaster basketball-wise for my career,” Fournier said.

Fournier is set to make $18 million in the last guaranteed year of his four-year, $73 million contract that he signed in August 2021. His role on the Knicks diminished when he was moved to the bench after starting the first seven games last season.

Fournier averaged 17 minutes per game, which was the lowest number of minutes he played since his rookie season with the Denver Nuggets in 2012-2013. He started all 80 games and averaged 14.1 points per game the previous season with the Knicks.

His frustrations boiled over after the Knicks lost to the Miami Heat in the second round of the NBA playoffs in May.

“You know I’m not gonna be back,” he told reporters at the time. “There’s no way they’re gonna keep me. I would be very surprised if they do. So, we’ll see. It’s obviously not in my hands though.”

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Nothing has changed since then.

Fournier is still confused about how the Knicks deployed him, according to New York Post translation.

“If you want to trade me with a good return, why didn’t you use me? I was coming out of a season where I was the fourth-best 3-point shooter in the league. Why not take advantage of it?

“Now they won’t get anything interesting and that’s normal because I couldn’t show anything [on the court],” Fournier said.

Fournier believes his desire to be traded also matches up with what the Knicks want: a fresh start.

“I would be very surprised to be a Knick next year,” he said. “They pay me $18 million, they have no interest in keeping me.”